Activity 2: The Story Of The Shape Of The Spirit (10 minutes), Workshop 4: Spiritual Partnerships, in the Spirit in Practice Program
Materials for Activity
- Copies of Story 1: The Shape of the Spirit (one copy for leader, plus several copies for participants who may wish to read along)
- Optional: Microphone
- Optional: Pulpit or lectern
- Optional: Bell
Preparation for Activity
- Review the story in advance so that you can present it effectively.
Description of Activity
Read the story "The Shape of the Spirit" aloud. Provide copies of the story to people who prefer to read along.After sharing the story, invite participants to take a moment to quietly center themselves, to let go of any tension or emotions that are not needed for the next hour, and to breathe deeply. You may ring a bell at the beginning and end of this silent time, or simply invite people into the silence and then gently bring them out.
After the silence, invite participants to discuss their responses to the story. Keep the discussion brief and focused, allowing time for your own concluding remarks. Ask:
- Does this story sound familiar to you? Why or why not?
- Is spiritual partnership something you see many examples of?
- How do you think society would be different if people paid as much attention to being spiritually healthy as they do to being physically healthy?
- How do you think having a "spiritual buddy" or spiritual friend would affect your own spiritual practices?
Conclude by emphasizing the value of spiritual friends. You may wish to draw on the text from this workshop's Introduction to make your points.
Including All Participants
Be sure that all participants can hear the story, or have the story interpreted for them. Using a microphone for this activity helps more people hear the story. You may wish to print out a copy of the story in advance for participants who are hard of hearing or who prefer to read along.This work is made possible by the generosity of individual donors. Please consider making a donation today.
Last updated on Wednesday, October 26, 2011.
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